I think, deep down inside, he knows I remember. He
knows I can still use my powers. But I made a choice – and he
respected it. He certainly has grown up since I last saw him.

Why couldn't any of the other men I've met be
like that?

Now, with the ordeal over, I can come back. Within
two minutes, I'm already in the woods. Running. I run for what
seems like ages. So many trees. So many plants. All green. The person
I'm looking for is among them, hiding somewhere. I can smell them.
This part's the game. Most of the time, I lose.

Just how I like it now. I've lost all my life.
Even when I won, I lost. So from now on, if I'm going to lose, I'm
going to lose in a controlled environment. I've found that's the
only way I can truly win.

As I back up after hearing a twig snap right in
front of me, cold touch suddenly runs along my shoulders. I shudder,
enjoying the knowledge of the fact I've lost. I let the fingers
trace down my arms, until the green-clad arms they're attached to
fall down over my body and wrap around my waist. I feel a warm body
press against me from behind. A sniffing nose breathes in my scent,
savoring every last bit of it. I run my hand along the bottom of that
sniffing neck. The reaction is exactly the one I expected to receive.
I turn around in her grip and look up at her, wrapping my arms around
her waist; return for hers around mine. All the news reports say she
was busted by the Titans in some big incident that was in Paris a few
weeks ago. But she obviously broke out. And I don't care. Time to
take this to the next level, anyways.

My eyes glow softly yellow, and the rock we're
standing on lifts off the ground as my will desires it to. We have to
stay hidden. I'm not letting her lose me. Not after I let him lose
me. And I'm not losing her. So I take her away. Far away, to a
place only she and I know about. She loves it here. I love it here.
The land's covered in old, tall trees with many sturdy branches,
which she loves because she can run & train. And there's a nice
small pond and creek with a lot of boulders and pebbles by its banks
that I can sit and relax by. I settle the rock down lightly next to
one of these banks, under the shade a thick patch of leaves in the
tree canopy above. I look up at her. Dammit, what is it with me and
people with masks? Even he wore a mask before he was a Titan. Then –
yeah, I think I'd rather just forget that that ever happened…

But her – It's that damned cat mask, I tell
you. It's nothing like the masks I've seen before. It's not
just a mask that hides anything. It's a mask that somehow hides her
secrets, yet announces everything about her at the same time. That
fixed grin – it's her, down to the very bone. I lean against her,
tracing my finger along her shoulders. I feel the shudder of her
kimono, and grin, knowing what's coming next. She grabs me, and in
a flash, she's on top of me, the gauntlet claws unsheathed. She
traces the claws down my clothing – conveniently slicing them off
me in the process. She leans down and takes off her mask as her long
black hair cascades over her face and falls around mine. My eyes glow again, and soon
anybody walking down the path will admire the nice rock. She'll
only reveal her face to me. She'll only reveal her voice to me.
Only I am to know the taste of her lips, the feel of her body - the
pleasure of her love. Otherwise, she's silent.

Silent and hidden – yet also completely exposed.

Our love is a game; a hunt to be the better. A
hunt I always seem to lose…

But every time I see my crazy cat grinning at me,
I remember why I've finally come to love that part.

END

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